If 2014 was the year of bringing sustainable fashion to the forefront, 2015 will be the year of embracing it as a mainstream item. Mass market leaders, high-end designers and grassroots labels are online and dishing out green, fair trade and ethical products.

However, it’s one thing to say that you want a product made from cruelty-free leather or for which the workers who made it were paid fairly, how far would the average consumer be willing to go? Designers are beginning to consider alternative to conventional materials such as leather. These alternatives include:

Fish skin

Recycled eel skin

Pinatex (a fabric made of pineapples)

DIY vegetable leather (made of green tea, sugar, bacteria, and yeast)

Spiber (a high-tech silk made of spiders)

Fabrican (a sprayable fabric)

It will be interesting to see how these new-age fabrics will impact the 2015 consumer markets. Keep on the lookout for these unusual and exciting ideas.

As the New Year arrives, we decided to leave you with a few thoughts to reminisce about and consider as you set resolutions for yourself. Most importantly: Who made your clothes?

Who made the garments that make you feel good as you walk into an office holiday party? Who made that one accessory that helps you shine at your family dinner?

Odds are that you won’t be too happy with the answer to these questions. With fast fashion dominating the stores you love, sketchy manufacturing practices and a lack of government regulations in many of the top garment producing countries, and raging consumer desires for quantity as well as quality, the circumstances of the workers that make your favourite fashions is dire.

This New Years, consider this question and make changes in your life that help you become happier with the answer. Shop from ethical brands, advocate for tougher regulatory standards in garment producing countries, avoid fast fashion, donate to microloan funds and encourage others to learn more about the ethical fashion movement.

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The Bay & Harbour Blog

Bay & Harbour is the brainchild of a Toronto-based mother/daughter team with an eye for trend-setting, unique and high-quality fashion & lifestyle products.

The pair is inspired by different cultures, handicraft techniques, discrete designs, and fashion trends from their travels around the world. Bay & Harbour as their outlet to share that love of design with others.

The Bay & Harbour collections feature a variety of accessories & lifestyle products for both men & women.

The co-founders are passionate about fashion with a cause. Many of the Bay & Harbour collections also include pieces that are sustainable and / or ethically made.